Cumbria Community Foundation - Annual Review 2021

8 9 GRANT STORY: HOWGI LL FAMI LY CENTRE The foundation of a baby’s social and emotional wellbeing begins during pregnancy and continues throughout the first 1001 days of life. Sometimes, a parent’s life experience can create a psychological barrier making it harder to connect emotionally with their baby. Good Enough Start supports parents to prevent any difficulty affecting their ability to create a secure parent-infant relationship. It works in partnership with Howgill Family Centre, the NHS, and all community-based family service providers, and is available to parents in the Millom area. Described by one parent as “like holding our hands through some of the hardest times,” support is available during pregnancy, birth and up until the child is two years old. The project received just under £27,000 from several funds, including the Pappagallino Fund and the Barker Fund, to provide training to practitioners over multiple years. Good Enough Start Chair, Janice Brockbank, said: “As adults when we experience severe significant or minor life challenges, this can seriously affect our wellbeing. So as a parent, life’s stressors can adversely affect our ability to connect emotionally with our baby. Our practitioners help parents strengthen their relationship with their baby, even if other aspects of life might feel overwhelming.” Over three years, the project aims to support up to 300 parents and 90 ‘at risk’ babies will receive specialist intervention. Thank you for recognising that I was struggling, for getting me the help I needed and supporting all three of us. Thank you for making me talk when I didn’t want to but needed to. I’m so grateful to you for being there and for helping me get back on my feet and become the parent I wanted to be. “ ” Providing a good enough start in life Helping care leavers transition into adulthood The Stepladder of Achievement programme gives teenagers the chance to earn up to £1,500 in a savings account by completing an online course in financial and life skills, ready for when they leave care aged 18. It aims to help combat the disadvantage faced by young people in care. 40% of 19-year- olds who have been in care are not in education, employment or training compared to 13% of the general population. Young people learn about money and having a bank account and mortgages. The step on how to manage your money is Open University accredited. “I can’t even describe how good the programme was. If I hadn’t done it, I genuinely don’t know where I would be. The whole aim is to make you more employable and confident in your abilities,” says one 19-year-old from West Cumbria who left care last year. She now has a job and added: “It was all good information that I wouldn’t have got elsewhere. When you turn 18, a lot of the support you have had disappears. The section on ‘making my money work’ was very helpful for me, moving to living independently. Growing up is generally scary but if you don’t have that family support system behind you it is even more difficult.” The Stepladder of Achievement Programme is run by the charity The Share Foundation, and young people receive a sum of money for each step of the course they complete, finishing with the savings in an account. Mentoring is provided by Cumbria Youth Alliance. The Share Foundation received £10,000 from the Cumberland Building Society Community Fund, granted over two years. So far, over 50 young people have taken part and another 51 are waiting to register as funding becomes available for them. GRANT STORY: THE SHARE FOUNDATION